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After I hang up, everything else happens so fast I’m not sure it’s not a fever dream. The flight from Portland to New York is a blip during which I take a crash course on dinosaurs. I text Cormac to get Aria’s address from Lily in the Uber ride to Somerset Harbor, and in a blink, I’m knocking on her door.
When she opens it up, she takes my breath away. Even her pissed off expression is sexy. It’s not fair, but that’s par for the course at this point, and I have to get over thinking about things in terms of fair or unfair. It’s immature to think about the fairness to me, when there’s a little boy who is growing up without a fatherbecauseof me. So, I take a quick breath, ignore my pride, and start. “Hi.”
Her voice makes my spine twitch in all the right ways. “Hi.”
26
Aria
It is hard to hold onto how annoyed I am that Everett just showed up on my doorstep. Though, technically, I kind ofdidthe same thing to him in Maine. Whatever the case, his incredible good looks make it a challenge to remain as annoyed as I want to be.
Everett stands in front of me disheveled, which only makes him cuter. It’s just plain wrong that slightly messy hair looks sexy on men and terrible on women. He’s lost some of the sleepiness from the last time I saw him. In fact, he looks startlingly alert, considering everything he has been through recently. No, not alert. He looks nervous. Good.
Quietly, he asks, “Do you have a minute?”
I peek in at Owen, and he’s not paying any attention to me. Too engrossed in his dinosaurs acting out the last half hour of Lord of the Rings, and how he ended up crossing those genres I will never know. But it’s made for some compelling dino-drama.
I close the door quietly, then look Everett in the eyes. The eyes I got so lost in when I met him. Brushing that memory aside, I shrug and wrap my sherpa-lined robe tighter to me. Feels like I’ll need armor for this conversation. “Sure.”
“He’s in there now?”
I nod.
“Does he…does he know about me?”
“He knows his father is an explorer, who I was friendly with and who left before he was born. I’ve mentioned that I might be able to get in contact with him, and I asked him if he wanted to meet him.”
Everett’s posture tenses as he waits. “And?”
“That’s all he knows.”
“No, I mean, does he want to meet me?”
“Of course, he does. You’re his father. What kind of question is that?”
He lets out a nervous laugh and shakes his head. “I keep forgetting you’ve never been on this end of this.” When he makes eye contact again, my heart wrenches. If there were any guile in Everett before, it’s gone. He is raw with emotion and his voice cracks as he says, “Ever since I found out about him, I was sure he’d hate me.”
Pity and confusion overtake my anger. “Why?”
“Why?” Another laugh. “For the five birthdays I’ve missed. For five Christmases…or Hanukkahs, I don’t know what you’re into, but for five years of holidays and report cards and random toys and all the things a dad is supposed be around for. It’s my own fault my son has grown up without a father, and I hate it!” His shoulders heave as he stands here, and I want to throw my arms around him to make him feel better.
Only, I don’t. I’m still angry with him. Still hurt by how things went in Maine. This whole thing is such a mess. But I have to stay focused on what’s important. “Keep your voice down, please. He can’t hear this right now.”
He blinks and shakes himself. His voice drops low. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I’ll keep it together.”
“This isn’t the right way to go about this. You should have called or texted me. You know that, right?”
“I was afraid you’d tell me not to come. I only just worked up the courage to come here in the first place.”
Sadly, I know the feeling. “It’s not easy to just show up, not knowing what you’ll get. Believe me, I know.”
He winces. “As far as Maine goes, I am so sorry about being such an asshole to you.”
“I get it. It was a surprise from hell—"
He laughs. “No, that’s not it. Not entirely. When Cap told me I had a visitor, I assumed it was one of my brothers come to tell me something happened to our parents, or something equally terrible. Then I saw it was you, and somehow, that was worse—"
I laugh sharply. “Flattering.”
